So, you just bought your brand new favorite pair of gloves *cough cough KO Studio gloves* and you want them to last forever. How do you do it?
#1: Wear hand wraps
Like any athletic gear, your boxing gloves will get sweaty, like, disgustingly sweaty. To combat this, the first thing to do is always wear hand wraps. Of course, the main purpose of hand wraps is to support your hands and wrists, but the second purpose is to absorb the sweat before it seeps through your gloves. So, after a couple uses, you might want to wash your hand wraps. You can either hand wash them or (for a less time-consuming option) toss them in the laundry machine. Use cold water and use a gentle cycle to keep your wraps in the best condition. When washing hand wraps through a machine it's recommended to use a mesh laundry bag to hold them to prevent tangling. You can even use your KO mesh bag that comes free with all bundles! Now once your wraps are fresh and clean you should hang them up to air dry for your next use.
#2: Clean your gloves after every use!
The first thing you should do when you get home from a boxing sesh is open up your gloves and wipe them down with some sort of cleaning solution. The easiest solution to use is to spray them with an antibacterial spray and then wipe them down. Be careful you don't use an excessive amount however, as it could irritate your hands. Alternatively, you could also make a homemade solution. There are tons of solution formulas online to choose from, but a common one is to use a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar diluted with a bit of water and spray it in your gloves!
#3: Let them dry!
Now, set your gloves out to dry! If you don't let your gloves dry out, the bacteria from the moisture will build up and cause your gloves to stink (gross...). To speed up the drying process, you can stuff your gloves with a couple of different things:
- Newspaper
- Glove dogs (breathable cotton shells filled with cedar chips)
- Baking soda or baby powder
- Either sprinkle a bit in your gloves and dump it out later, or fill up a sock and tie it for easy use.
But wait, can't you be more efficient and use other things to dry out your gloves rather than just wait? Absolutely! Setting them in front of a fan could speed it up a bit, but some things you might want to avoid are:
- A hair dryer on the heat setting
- Direct sunlight for a prolonged amount of time (a little sunlight is okay!)
- A radiator
- A dryer
Using excessive heat on your gloves could dry out the leather instead of just the inner fabric and padding, which causes cracking on the gloves. Stay safe and protect your gloves!
#4: Fix that smell!
Even if you follow the above advice to a T, it is still likely that your gloves will start to stink a little. That's perfectly normal! If you're still concerned, here are a few ways to make them smell a little better:
- Stuff them with dryer sheets
- Glove/shoe deodorizers, you can find these on amazon or at your local dicks sporting goods.
- Put laundry scent boosters in a small mesh bag to keep inside your gloves.
All in all, taking care of your boxing gloves isn’t rocket science! Just be mindful to clean them every now and then and always, always set them out to dry!
